Big Worlds On Small Screens: Rebecca Fisher Discusses “Orphan Black”

Introduction:

I was initially rather reluctant to do a write-up on Orphan Black, as I honestly think that the less you know about it, the more you’ll enjoy watching it. So if you want to simply take my word that this is one of the best shows I’ve seen in years, then stop reading now and go track it down!

But if you want a little more bait to go with that hook, I would recommend Orphan Black by saying it has a compelling premise, an incredible lead actress, and a riveting science-fiction/conspiracy-thriller plot that doesn’t slow down for even one second over the course of its ten episode season.

Premise:

How’s this for a set-up? Sarah Manning is at the train station, as desperate to get rid of some cocaine stolen from her abusive ex-boyfriend as she is eager to get back in touch with her young daughter after a ten-month separation. Arguing with her foster-mother on a pay phone, she only half-notices a distressed woman on the other end of the platform.

As Sarah approaches, the woman takes off her shoes and jacket, turns to face Sarah, and steps out in front of an oncoming train. As horrific as it all is, Sarah was able to register something truly bizarre in the moment just before impact: that the woman looked just like her. As in, identical to her.

Sarah notices something odd…

Being something of an opportunist, Sarah grabs the dead woman’s hand-bag, finding keys and an address inside. Her driver’s license identifies her as Beth Childs, and it doesn’t take a lot of digging for Sarah to discover that she has seventy-five grand in her bank account. Hatching a plan with her foster-brother Felix, she takes on the persona of Beth in order to get her hands on the money.

But impersonating a dead woman comes with a whole new set of problems, and Sarah can’t help but get embroiled in her doppelganger’s life. She’s getting frantic phone-calls from someone called Art. She finds an array of birth certificates in Beth’s safety-deposit box. She sees flashing lights from a parked car outside her flat. What the heck’s going on?

Story:

Okay, so without giving too much more away: clones. That’s the concept this show rests upon, and with each day that passes Sarah gets sucked deeper and deeper into the mystery of her own origins. It turns out that Beth was not the only clone out there, and soon Sarah tracks down two more: soccer mum Alison Hendrix and scientist Cosima Niehaus, both of whom have been grappling with the situation for far longer than Sarah.

The resemblance is uncanny.

They’re edgy and they’re frightened, and it soon becomes clear why: someone has been assassinating their “sisters” one by one. As Cosima researches their genetic makeup and Allison struggles to hold her family together, Sarah is put on the trail of a killer that threatens all of them.

And at this point, I’m definitely not giving anything else away. The tightly-plotted structure of Orphan Black means that each episode is crucial in getting a clear picture of what’s going on, making it feel more like a long film than an episodic TV show.

The viewer is swept up along with Sarah as her con-job gets increasingly more complicated, and the show’s most exhilarating element is the position you’re put in while watching. On the one hand, you initially know nothing about Sarah’s immediate situation, sharing in her confusion and distress as she flounders along, on the other, you’re in the know about other plot-points, anticipating the ball to drop when supporting characters begin catching up with what Sarah already knows.

Sarah and her brother Felix plot their next move.

Along with Sarah’s attempts to fool those close to Beth, we follow along in a variety of other subplots: a police investigation, the shady dealings of a scientific corporation, the trail of a serial killer – there’s even time for a comedic interlude when the clones collide during a potluck lunch.

On the way, Orphan Black grapples with the ethical implications of human cloning, but more importantly, explores the issue of personal identity. When you share your face with at least half-a-dozen others, what is it that differentiates you? Are you shaped by nature or nurture? How are you an individual?

Characters:

Which brings us to Tatiana Maslany, the lead actress. Though she’s backed up by a strong supporting cast, it’s safe to say that she carries the entirety of the show on her shoulders. To talk about her performance is to discuss at least six different characters, four of which she plays on a regular basis.

She gives each of them distinctive body language and speech patterns; even more impressively, she manages to keep track of her performance when the time comes for the clones to start impersonating each other. And such is her range that you never loose track of who’s who. If she doesn’t eventually win an Emmy Award for what she achieves on Orphan Black, there is no justice in the world.

Tatiana Maslany shares the screen with herself – twice over.

For the most part though, she takes on the role of Sarah Manning, a streetwise heroine who can wriggle out of all kinds of scrapes with just her wits. Watching her come across obstacles and frantically try to think her way out of them in a matter of seconds provides plenty of adrenaline kicks across the course of the first season. With each day that passes she gets more involved, more invested, more wrapped up in the mystery of her life and the desire to keep her newfound “sisters” safe.

There is a large cast of supporting characters, from siblings to partners to spouses, all of whom are intriguing characters that may or may not be trustworthy. As the episodes go on, it become apparent that any one of them should be in on the conspiracy that surrounds the cloning experiment…

Conclusion:

Just watch it.

Alison and Sarah come face to face.

They say the best special-effects aren’t the ones the audience appreciate, but the ones they don’t even notice. In this case, the techniques used to bring the clones together are utterly seamless, and at times it comes as a surprise to remember that they’re all being played by a single person.

Seriously, this is one of the few shows that I’d have very few qualms about recommending to anybody. It’s a little dark at times, and it demands your full attention in order to understand what’s going on, but it’s a fantastically suspenseful and thrilling drama series. I can’t wait until season two.

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Next Time: Gargoyles

There’s no better way to introduce the next show than by using its own introductory narrative: “One thousand years ago, superstition and the sword ruled. It was a time of darkness. It was a world of fear. It was the age of – Gargoyles!”

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Rebecca Fisher

About The Reviewer:

Rebecca Fisher is a graduate of the University of Canterbury with a Masters degree in English Literature, mainly, she claims, because she was able to get away with writing her thesis on C.S. Lewis and Philip Pullman. She is a reviewer for FantasyLiterature.com, a large website that specializes in fantasy and science-fiction novels, as well as posting reviews to Amazon.com and her LiveJournal blog.

To read Rebecca’s detailed introduction of both herself and the series, as well as preceding reviews, click on:

Very well said Rebecca. I know from experience how hard it is to talk about Orphan Black without giving anything away. I host/produce The Orphan Black Podcast for Solo Talk Media where every show I do talks about one episode, and I do it as if I’m watching it for the first time so as to not spoil my listeners. I don’t know how many times I’ve had to edit myself because I’ve let something slip that the viewer isn’t suppose to know yet. I’m recording my next show tomorrow and will mention and provide a link to this article.

"THE HEIR OF NIGHT by Helen Lowe is a richly told tale of strange magic, dark treachery and conflicting loyalties, set in a well realized world."--Robin Hobb

Thornspell

Jacket art by Antonio Javier Caparo

Thornspell is my first novel and is published by Knopf (Random House Children's Books, USA). It won the Sir Julius Vogel Award 2009 for Best Novel: Young Adult and was a Storylines Childrens' Literature Trust Notable Book 2009.